There has been a rising consumption of palm oil in Ghana, leading to increase in importation of the oil into the country.

Palm oil imports into Ghana increased from 163,000 tonnes in 2015 to 203,000 tonnes in 2016, an increase of about 23.9 per cent.

Within the first nine months of this year, Malaysian palm oil imports into Ghana totaled 213,000 tonnes.

The Chairman of Malaysia Palm Oil Council (MPOC), Mr Dato Lee Yeow Chor, stated that at the launch of Malaysia–Ghana Palm Oil Trade fair and Seminar (POTS) 2017 in Accra.

Event

The seminar, organised by MPOC in collaboration with Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) with support from the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), was also to discuss the importance of strategic collaboration among industry members in the palm oil market.

Themed: ‘Creating mutual partnership, optimising and expanding palm oil opportunities in West Africa,’ the maiden edition of the event attracted over 300 participants from both Ghana and Malaysia.

Discussants covered topics on oils and fats ranging from market outlook and trade to oil palm planting and logistics situation in Africa.

Ghana is said to be one of Malaysia’s trading partners in the region. The total trade registered between the two countries was US$337 million in 2016.

About US$140 million has already been recorded within the third-quarter of 2017 from the importation of oil into the country.

Significance

According to Mr Chor, the event is part of efforts to strengthen the existing diplomatic relationship between Ghana and Malaysia, particularly in trade and investment.

All indicators, he said, showed that Ghana was poised to grow in consumption and importation of oils and fats, so strengthening Malaysia palm oil industry to become a partner in Ghana’s oils and fats industry was a step in the right direction.

He said it was necessary to realise the full potential of palm oil as a nutritious and cost competitive vegetable oil.

Mr Chor said Malaysia considered West African markets as important destinations for Malaysian palm oil.

“In recent years, there has been a significant upward trend of Malaysian palm oil exports into this region. Last year, Malaysia exported about one million tonnes of palm oils to all countries in the West African region,” he added.

An expert in palm oil, Dr James Fry, observed that statistics in Africa were not always reliable due to inadequate records.

Malaysia palm oil industry

The plantation industry, in particular palm oil, is one of the main pillars of Malaysia’s economy. The palm oil sector has contributed significantly towards providing a continuous inflow of export earnings through the export of raw commodity and value-added products to the global market.

In 2016, palm oil contributed significantly in export earnings for Malaysia, accounting for 33 per cent of the world’s palm oil production and 39 per cent of total palm oil exports.